AMHERST — They came from around the region Thursday to the University of Massachusetts Mullins Center to run the last 2.62 miles of what turned out to be a tragic Boston Marathon.

Hundreds of runners came to raise money for The One Fund Boston. It will benefit the victims of the two bombings that occurred at the finish line of Monday’s 26.2-mile Boston Marathon. The bomb’s killed three people and injured more than 170.

Runners began gathering at the UMass Mullins Center about 6 p.m. and got off about 6:35 p.m. on a circular route on sidewalks around the campus.

Nineteen-year-old UMass freshman Christopher J. Weyant, who organized the race, called for a moment of silence before the runners started the course.

Weyant told the crowd that the purpose of the race was twofold — to honor the victims and but also “to show anybody who wants to disrupt our peace that they cannot do it.”

The Wilbraham resident told the runners that many of his family and friends live in Boston and that he visits the city frequently. He began organizing the race Tuesday through Facebook and got responses from 700 people interested in the event.

Most of the runners appeared to be students dressed casually in T-shirts and running gear.

“I usually run at this time so I figured why not run for a good cause,” runner Toni C. Fiori of Medway said. “It’s kind of awesome. It’s such a good cause.”

The 22-year-old Umass senior took part in the run with a group of friends.

“I feel like it’s the least I can do to show support for the victims and their families. I love running,” 21-year-old UMass senior Hannah L. Srebnik said.

A Westborough resident, Srebnik said her 23-year-old sister, Jenna, who was unaffected, was at work at the offices of “Boston Magazine” near the blasts when the tragedy occurred. Srebnik said family members called Jenna immediately to confirm that she was okay.

“I thought it would be cool. I saw it on Facebook. My friend Ashley invited me to do it. It seemed like a good thing to do,” John T. Wright, a 23-year-old Greenfield resident enrolled at Greenfield Community College, said.

Wright, who plans to transfer to the Amherst campus next fall, said he knows people who work in shops near where the blasts occurred, but they were not among the injured.

Thursday’s run is expected to be one of many other 2.62-mile races to take place around the country to benefit The One Fund Boston, which will be administered by UMass alumnus Kenneth Feinberg. He was also named special master of the U.S. government’s September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. The 2.62 miles is to symbolize the portion of the Boston Marathon that was left unrun by some participants.